Locking means for cabinets



1 J. E. ROBERTS 3,152,847

LOCKING MEANS FOR CABINETS Filed Oct. 1, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 lfl 56 72 7 56 .Q z 2 a; as 74 9 94 2/ 0 .i i h' f M I I 26 a9 26 I 49 52 2754 g, {4 26 52 can is 57 7 E 57 Z9 z 7/ 4 Juafsarr 1 Aofier/s, 7 Z. TINVENTOR.

W/MNN 8 "CHAN/GAL A/Iorneys for Anal/cam Oct. 13, 1964 J. a. ROBERTS 3,152,847

LOCKING MEANS FOR CABINETS Filed on. 1, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 c/uopn Rafe A;

INVENTOR- WHANN 8 ":MAN/GAL Al/arnoy: for l o I/cam by! M United States Patent 3,152,847 LOCKWG MEANS FOR CABINETS Judson E. Roberts, Northridge, Califl, 'assiguor to Helga Metal Production Company, Van Nuys, (Zaiiii, a corporation of California Filed (let. 1, 1962, Ser. No. 227,244 3 Claims. (Cl. 312-421) This invention relates generally to cabinets and relates more particularly to locking apparatus therefor.

While the invention has particular utility in connection with filing cabinets and is shown and described in such connection, it is to be understood that its utility is not confined thereto.

The problem of providing a tamper-proof safety locking apparatus for metal filing cabinets and the like involves certain known difliculties, including, for certain purposes, the meeting of certain security requirements.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a locking apparatus for cabinets and the like that will solve the problem and overcome-the difliculties .involved therein, including the meeting of said security requirements.

It is another object of the invention to provide apparatus of this character which will prevent undetectable, unauthorized opening of the cabinet.

It is still another object of the invention to provide apparatus of this character which will so securely lock the cabinet as to prevent its being opened without damage to the structure.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a lock in apparatus of this character having a bolt at each side of the drawer. v

It is a still further object of the invention to provide apparatus of this character that is relatively simple in construction and operation.

It is another object of the invention to provide apparatus of this character that is rugged in construction.

It is still another object of this invention to provide apparatus of this character that is eifective and reliable.

It is a further object of the invention to provide apparatus of this character that is relatively light in weight.

It is a still further object of the invention to provide apparatus of this character thatis relatively inexpensive to manufacture;

Various problems are involved in combining the lock mechanism and the securing means for drawers other than the. drawer having the lock mechanism and patenta-ble novelty resides in subcombinations of the present locking apparatus as well as in the entire combination thereof.

The characteristics and advantages of theinvention are further sufiiciently referred to in connection with the stollowing detailed description of the accompanying drawings, which represent one embodiment. After considering this example skilled persons will understand that many variations may be made without departing from the principles disclosed and I contemplate the employinent of any structures, arrangements or modes of op- V eration that are properly within the scope of the appended claims.

Referring to the drawings, which are for illustrative purposes only:

'FIG. 1 is the tron't elevational View of a cabinet having locking apparatus embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2is an enlarged side 'view with the cover for the lock mechanism in section so as to show certain parts thereof;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line '3- 3 of FIG. 1; j FIG.14 is a sectional view taken on line 4-4 of FIG.

2 showing the locking mechanism in the locking position;

FIG. 5 is a similar view showing a portion of the locking mechanism in the unlocked position;

FIG. 6 is a view of one side of the cabinet with a portion of the outer wall broken away to show the drawer securing means of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 77 of FIG. 6; and

FIG. 8 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 8-8 of FIG. 6.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, there is shown a cabinet having side walls 10, a top wall 11, a bottom wall 12, and a back wall 14.- The various parts or walls are secured together in any well known manner, such as, for example, welding, brazing, or the like. Thus there is formed a cabinet enclosure which is open at the front. The front is provided with horizontally arranged, as shown in FIG. 1, transversely extending cross members 15 which are in parallel relationship relative to each other and are spaced Vertically apart to form drawer openings, indicated generally at 17. The cross members 15 are secured in any well known manner, such as by welding, brazing, or the like.

At each side of each drawer opening there is a cabinet raceway 18 of well known construction and operation, said raceway being of generally channel shape and being secured to the adjacent side wall portion of the cabinet by any suitable well known means, such as welding, brazing, or the like.

The, cabinet raceways 18 extend from front to rear of the cabinet and are located adjacent the horizontal plane of the respective cross members 15. The mechanism includes a cradle assembly (not shown) slidably mounted in the cabinet raceway-s of each drawer opening. The drawer assembly is carried by the cradle assembly in the usual manner and each drawer assembly includes a front wall 20, side walls 21, a bottom wall 22, and a back Wall 23. Various parts of the drawer assembly are secured together in the usual well known manner. The mounting of the drawers is such that said drawers will slide between a closed position and an open position, there being stop means (not shown), of any well known type to limit inward and outward movement of the drawers. 7

The lock mechanism of the present apparatus is incorporated in one of the drawers, for example, the top drawer, as disclosed herein.

The lock mechanism comprises a pair of oppositely arranged horizontal, as shown in the drawings, bolts 26, slidable in openings 27 adjacent the inner free ends of vertically arranged brackets 28 having their forward or outward edges turned laterally, as at 29, for reception in recesses 36 between the front wall 20 of the drawer and a parallel wall portion 31 of an inturned edge portion of the front wall 20. The inturned portion also includes a vertical flange 32 along the inner edge of the part 31, the part 31 and flange 32 abut against adjacent portions of the bracket 2% and are secured thereto by any suitable means such as spot welding, brazing, or the like.

Inner portions of the bolts 26 are secured by any suitable means, such as spot welding, brazing or the like, to the upper horizontal edge portions of bolt supporting plates 35.

Each plate 35 has a substantial portion depending from the. edge portion to which the respective bolt is secured and there is an inner vertical edge portion 37 turned forwardly at right angles to the bolt supporting plate and from the lower free edge of said forwardly turned portion 37 there is an inwardly turned flange 38 parallel to the front wall 20 of the drawer and in a plane parallel to the plane of the respective plate 35.

From the upper inner end'of 'one of the flanges 38 there extends inwardly an ear 4% having an opening therein for operable reception of a pivot pin 41' secured in an opening provided therefor in a rotatable disc 42. It is to be understood, of course, that the pin41 may be secured to the ear 4t and be rotatable in the opening in the disc. The other or opposite plate 35 has an ear 43 similar to the ear 40 at the lower end thereof, car 43 having an opening provided for a pin 44 secured in an opening provided therefor in the disc 42 at a location diametrically opposite the pin 41. The pin 44 is operably associated with the ear 43 and it is to be noted that there is a slot 45 in the flange 38 from which the car 43 projects.

The purpose of slot 45 is to provide operative clearance between the last mentioned flange 3S and a shaft47 which carries the disc 42. Shaft 47 has a reduced diameter externally threaded inner end portion which extends inwardly from a shoulder of said shaft 47. Disc 42 is provided with an axial opening in' which the reduced diameter portion 48 is received and a nut 49 is screwed onto said inner end portion 48 of the shaft for securing said disc 42 to said shaft.

Shaft 47 also has an outer reduced diameter portion which is rotatably received in-an opening provided therefor in the front wall 20' of the top drawer and a knob 50 is attached to said shaft by any suitable means, such as a press fit or the like, the shaft 47 and disc 42 operably support the inner ends of the flanges 33 and hence the plates 35 and bolts 26, the outer ends of said bolts 26 being supported by the brackets 28, said bolts having a small amount of play in the openings 27 of said brackets.

It is to be noted that each of the flanges 38 has an ear 52 turned forwardly from its upper edge. Each bolt 26 is provided with a pin 54 extending laterally and engaging the inner side of the bracket 28 to limit outward movement of the bolts.

The bolts are actuated between their inner unlocked or release position and their outer locked position by means of the knob 55 When the knob is turned said knob rotates the shaft 47 and disc 42 and clockwise movement of said knob results in counterclockwise movement of said disc. With the parts of the mechanism positioned as shown in FIG. 5, the bolts 26 are in their releasing or unlocked position. counterclockwise rotation of disc 42 causes said bolts to be moved outwardly to the locking position shown in FIGS. 3 and 6. Counter rotation of the disc 42, that is rotation in the clockwise direction, retracts the blots 26 to their FIG. position.

At the front of the cabinet said cabinet has vertically extending edge portions 56 defining the vertical sides of the drawer openings 17 and from the inner edges thereof there are inturned portions 57 from the inner edges of which are inturned flanges 58 which are spaced inwardly from the edge portions 56 and are parallel therewith.

When the bolts 26 are moved to the locking position the outer end portions thereof, as shown in FIG. 3,

.move behind the flanges 58 so that'the top drawer cannot be opened. In order to keep the bolts in the locked position locking means is provided and comprises a suitable lock. The lock shown herein is a combinationv lock, indicated generally at 60 The lock M) is secured in an opening provided therefor in the front wall of the top drawer, there being various well known means for thus securing the lock. The lock 6% includes the usual mechanism, indicated at 61, operated by the knob 62, there being a dial arrangement 63 of well known character. Lock 60 also includes a bolt 65 which, when the lock 60 is actuated to the locking position, moves downwardly into the space between the ears 52 of the bolt supporting plates 35, so that said ears canont be moved inwardly and the plates 35 and bolts 26 carried thereby cannot be moved from the locking position shown in FIG. 3. In order to unlock the top drawer the lock 6%? is actuated according to a predetermined combination and when the lock has been dialed in accordance with this combination the bolt 65 is raised from between the ears 52.

4. Thereafter the knob 50 may be actuated to retract the bolts 26 from their locking position.

The above described locking mechanism is provided with a cover 67 attached to the inner side of the front wall 20 of the drawer having the locking mechanism by means of screws, or the like, not shown. Cover 67 has forwardly projecting vertical sides 68 with openings 69 for operable reception of the bolts 26. There is also the forwardly projecting bottom wall 7 it spaced downwardly from but close to the lower edges of the bolt supporting plates 35 and the flanges 38 thereof.-

The drawers are provided with the usual handles, indicated at 71, for moving same in the opening and closing directions and there may also be' the usual well known manual latch mechanism which is released by movement of the latch buttons 72.

There is means for preventing opening of the other drawers of the cabinet when the upper drawer is closed, and, when said upper. drawer is locked in the closed position, none of the other drawers may be opened until the upper drawer is unlocked and moved to an open position.

This securing means for the other drawers comprises a pair of locking rods 74 and their associated parts, said rods being disposed adjacent respective rear corners of the cabinets. Since the locking rods 74 and their associated parts are of the same construction and operation, a description of one will sutiice.

The locking rod 74 is arranged vertically and includes an upper locking dog 75 associated with the upper drawer and a locking dog-76 for each of the drawers below the top drawer. These dogs are secured to the rod 74 by any suitable means, such as, for example, welding or the like, the dog 75 being off approximately 12 or any other suitable angular arrangement relative to the other dogs 76, as best shown in FIG. 7.

The lower end of rod 74 is slidably and rotatably mounted between a pair of ears '79 which are turned at right angles from that portion of the cabinet race 18 secured to theadjacent Wall of the cabinet. The cars 79 are at different levels to thereby provide better support for the rod 74. The free ends of ears 79 are disposed close to the adjacent side wall of the cabinet so that the rod 74 is operably held between the ears by said side wall. Each of the other cabinet raceways have a similar arrangement for operably receiving and supporting said rod.

The upper drawer is provided with a rod actuating member, indicated generally at 80. This rod actuating member is channel shaped, having a vertical part 82 parallel to but spaced outwardly from the adjacent side wall of the drawer towhich it is attached. There are top and bottom walls 83 of the channel shaped member, from the free edges of which extend in opposed relationship flanges 84 which are secured to the adjacent drawer wall by spot welding or any other suitable means.

On the top wall of the cabinet raceway for the lower drawer, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 8, there is secured, by

spot welding or other suitable means, a rod lifter, indicated generally at 86. This ljfter has a portion 87 secured to the top wall of said cabinet raceway by means indicated above and from the rear end of said part there is an upwardly and rearwardly inclined cam portion 88 adjacent the rod 74. From the rear of the cam portion 88 there is a downwardly and rearwardly extending end portion 89 which rests on the top side of said cabinet raceway.

With the top and lower drawers in the closed position, asshown in FIG. 6, the locking dog 75 will be in 'a rearwardly turned position with its rear free edge engaging the side-part 82 of the rod actuating member 80. The dog 76 is turned toward the adjacent side wall of the lower drawer at. substantially right angles thereto. It will alsobe noted that said dog.76 has its lower rear edge resting on the cam'portion 88 of the rod lifter intermediate the ends thereof, so that said rod 74 'is in a raised position. Immediately behind the dog 76 is a stop means comprising a channel shaped member having an outer side 92 parallel to but spaced from the adjacent wall of the lower drawer. Along the free edges of the top and bottom sides of the member 92 are outwardly extending flanges 94 which are secured to the adjacent wall of the lower drawer by spot welding or any other suitable means. The forward end of the side 92 of the stop means is in engagement with the rear side of the dog 76 so that the lower drawer'cannot be pulled open when the parts of -the mechanism are in the position shown in FIG. 6.

Upon opening of the upper drawer the rod actuating member 80 moves forwardly out of the way of the dog 75, thereby permitting rotative "movement of the rod '74, which movement will occur as the dog 76 moves downwardly on the cam portion 88 of the lifter 86 due to the weight of the rod. When the upper drawer is opened the rotation of the rod shown in FIGS. 6, 7 and 8 is in a counter-clockwise direction, the dog 75 moving to a posi tion at substantially right angles to the adjacent wall of the upper drawer and the dog 76 moving out of the path of the stop means 92. Since the intermediatedrawers also' have dogs 76 located as is the dog 76 in FIG. 6, all

of the drawers beneath the upper drawer, or any one or more of them, may be opened.

When the upper drawer is moved to the closed position the rod actuating member 80 engages the dog 75 and rotates same in the clockwise direction, thereby efiecting clockwise rotation of the rod 74, as viewed in FIGS. 6,

7 and 8. Rotation of the rod will, of course, correspond- :in'gly rotate the dog 76. As the dog 76 is rotated in a clockwise direction it moves upwardly onthe cam 88,

so that the lower drawer is held in the completely closed position when the upper drawer is closed.

Locking of the lock mechanism of the upper drawer, when said upper drawer is in the closed position, not only prevents opening of said upper drawer but also prevents opening of any of the other drawers.

Should any of'the lower drawers be in the open position when, the upper drawer is closed, such open drawer cannot be fully closed as the inner end of the stop means 92 will engage the dog 76 and said open drawer will stand open a substantial distance so that it will be readily apparent it has not been closed and locked.

Further, in the event the top drawer is closed but the bolts 26 have not been moved to the locked position as indicated by dial 50, the combination lock 60 cannot be actuated, thereby providing further visual evidence that the locking sequence has not been properly completed.

The invention and-its attendant advantages will be understood from the foregoing description and it will be apparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction and arrangement of the parts of the invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof or sacrificing its material advantages, the arrangement hereinbefore described being merely for purposes of illustration.

I claim:

1. Locking means for filing cabinets having top, bottom and side walls and a plurality of vertically arranged drawer openings at the front drawers carried by slides including raceways secured in the cabinet to the side walls thereof, said drawers including a bottom wall, side walls, a front wall, and bolt engageable parts at the sides of said openings, comprising:

(A) locking mechanism for the top drawer, said locking mechanism comprising a pair of oppositely arranged horizontally slidable bolts with their inner ends spaced apart;

(B) bolt supporting plates to which said bolts are secured, having aligned parts spaced apart from each other; v

(C) a rotatable shaft having a portion projecting wardly of the front wall of the drawer;

(D) a disc secured to the inner end of said shaft and rotatable thereby;

(E) means pivotally securing said plates to said disc with one plate pivotally secured to said disc adjacent the bottom thereof and the other plate secured adjacent the top of said disc;

(F) a knob at the outwardly projecting shaft portion secured to said shaft and adapted to rotate same, rotation of said knob and said disc effecting outward and inward movements of said bolts, said bolts when extended outwardly engaging said bolt engageable parts to thereby secure the drawer in the closed position, and when retracted disengaging said parts to permit opening of the drawer;

(G) a combination lock having the front part secured at the front of the front wall of the drawer and extending inwardly, said lock having a bolt positioned to be moved between said aligned parts of the bolt supporting plates when the bolts are in the extended position and to thereby prevent retraction of said bolts, said lock being adapted to move the bolt from between said parts of the bolt supporting plates to permit retraction of said bolts;

(H) a vertical drawer securing rod adjacent each rear corner of the cabinet, operably mounted for rotational and longitudinal movement;

(I) a locking dog on each rod adjacent the respective sides of the upper drawer;

(I) a rod actuating member secured to each side wall of the upper drawer for engagement with the said locking dog when the drawer is in the closed position;

(K) a locking dog on each rod for the other drawer;

(L) stop means secured to each of the side walls of the other drawer adjacent the inner end thereof and aligned for engagement with the last mentioned dog;

(M) a rod lifter for each rod, said rod lifters being secured to the top of the cabinet raceways and including an upwardly 'and rearwardly inclined cam portion on which the dogs for the lower drawer ridge to raise and lower said rod upon rotation thereof in respective directions, said actuating members of the upper drawer engaging the adjacent lugs and rotating same to cause rotation of the rods in a direction to move the dogs for the lower drawer to positions at substantially right angles to the adjacent drawer side walls and to simultaneously cause the last mentioned dogs to move upwardly on the cam portions of the lifters, the dogs for the other drawer then being in operative position relative to the respective stops of the other drawer to prevent opening movement of said other drawer, outward movement of the upper drawer causing the actuating members at the sides thereof to move out of engagement with the respective dogs adjacent said actuating members to permit said rods to move downwardly by their own weight and cause the dogs for the other drawer to move out of the path of the stop means on the side walls of said other drawer, thereby permitting said other drawer to be opened.

2. Securing means for the drawers of filing cabinets having top, bottom, back and side walls and a plurality of drawer openings at the front, a drawer carried by slides in the cabinet for each drawer opening, said drawers including a bottom wall, side walls and a front wall, comprising:

(A) a vertical drawer securing rod adjacent each rear corner of the cabinet, outwardly formed ears for the cabinet raceways operably engaging the rods forwardly and rearwardly'thereof and the ears of each forraceway being in ver-tically spaced horizontal planes, the outer. free ends of the ears being located close to the adjacent side wall, the rods thereby being retained in operative position and adapted to rotate and move longitudinally;

(B) a locking dog on each rod adjacent the respective said locking dogs being arranged at an angle of ap-' proximately 78 relative to respective dogs for the upper drawer;

' (E) stop means secured to each of the side walls of the other drawer adjacent the inner ends thereof and aligned for engagement with the last mentioned dog; (F) a rod lifterfor each rod, said rod lifters being secured to the top of the cabinet raceways and including an upwardly and rearwardly inclinedv cam portion on which the dogs for the lower drawer ride to raise and lower'said rod upon rotation thereof in respective directions, said actuating members of the upper drawer engaging the adjacent dogs and rotating same to cause rotation of the rods in a direction to move the dogs for the lower drawer to positions at substantially right angles to the adjacent drawer side walls and to simultaneously cause the last mentioned dogs to move upwardly on the cam portions of the lifters, the dogs for the lower drawer then being in operative position relative to the respective stops of the lower drawer to prevent opening movement of said lower drawer, outward movement of the upper drawer causing the actuating members at .the sides thereof to move out to engagement with the respective dogs adjacent said actuating members to permit said rods to move downwardly by their own weight and cause the dogs for the lower drawer to move out of the path of the stop means on the side 7 walls of said lower drawer, thereby permitting said lower drawer to be opened. 3. Securing means for drawers and filing cabinets having a plurality of drawer openings at the front, a drawer carried by slides in the cabinet for each drawer opening, said drawers including a bottom wall, side wall and a front wall, comprising:

(A) a vertical drawer securing rod oper-ably mounted 8 adjacent each rear corner of the cabinet for rotative and longitudinal movement;

(B) a locking dog on each rod adjacent the respective sides of the upper drawer;

(C) a rod actuated member secured to each side wall of the upper drawer for engagement with the said locking dog when the drawer is in the closed position, said actuating member being adapted to forwardly move away from said locking dog when the drawer is opened;

(D) a locking dog on each rod for the other drawer at approximately right angles to the respective dog for the .upper drawer;

(E) stop means secured to each of the side walls of the other drawer adjacent the inner end thereof and aligned for engagement with the last mentioned dogs, respectively; I

(F) a rod lifter for each rod, operably secured within the cabinet and including an upwardly and rearwardly inclined cam on which the dogs for the lower drawer ride so as to raise and lower said'rod upon rotation thereof in respective directions, said actuating members of the upper drawer engaging the adjacent dogs and rotating same to cause rotation of the rods in a direction to move the dogs for the lower drawer to positions at substantially right angles to the adjacent drawer side walls and to simultaneously cause the last mentioned dogs to move upwardly on the cam portions of the lifters, the dogs for the lower drawers then being in operative position relative to the respective stops of the lower drawer to prevent opening movement of said lower drawer, outward movement of the upper drawer causing the actuating members at the sides thereof to move out of engagement with the respective dogs adjacent said actuating members so that said rods move downwardly and cause the dogs for the lower drawer to move out of the path of the stop means on the side walls of said lower drawer.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 505,799 Brown Sept. 26, 1893 1,744,646 Kurten Ian. 21, 1930 2,148,050 Moseley Feb. 21, 1939 2,498,271 Hearn Feb. 21, 1950 2,804,364 Belew Aug. 27, 1957 2,823,536 Watson Feb. 18, 1958 2,887,965 Henkel May 26, 1958 

3. SECURING MEANS FOR DRAWERS AND FILING CABINETS HAVING A PLURALITY OF DRAWER OPENINGS AT THE FRONT, A DRAWER CARRIED BY SLIDES IN THE CABINET FOR EACH DRAWER OPENING, SAID DRAWERS INCLUDING A BOTTOM WALL, SIDE WALL AND A FRONT WALL, COMPRISING: (A) A VERTICAL DRAWER SECURING ROD OPERABLY MOUNTED ADJACENT EACH REAR CORNER OF THE CABINET FOR ROTATIVE AND LONGITUDINAL MOVEMENT; (B) A LOCKING DOG ON EACH ROD ADJACENT THE RESPECTIVE SIDES OF THE UPPER DRAWER; (C) A ROD ACTUATED MEMBER SECURED TO EACH SIDE WALL OF THE UPPER DRAWER FOR ENGAGEMENT WITH THE SAID LOCKING DOG WHEN THE DRAWER IS IN THE CLOSED POSITION, SAID ACTUATING MEMBER BEING ADAPTED TO FORWARDLY MOVE AWAY FROM SAID LOCKING DOG WHEN THE DRAWER IS OPENED; (D) A LOCKING DOG ON EACH ROD FOR THE OTHER DRAWER AT APPROXIMATELY RIGHT ANGLES TO THE RESPECTIVE DOG FOR THE UPPER DRAWER; (E) STOP MEANS SECURED TO EACH OF THE SIDE WALLS OF THE OTHER DRAWER ADJACENT THE INNER END THEREOF AND ALIGNED FOR ENGAGEMENT WITH THE LAST MENTIONED DOGS, RESPECTIVELY; (F) A ROD LIFTER FOR EACH ROD, OPERABLY SECURED WITHIN THE CABINET AND INCLUDING AN UPWARDLY AND REARWARDLY INCLINED CAM ON WHICH THE DOGS FOR THE LOWER DRAWER RIDE SO AS TO RAISE AND LOWER SAID ROD UPON ROTATION THEREOF IN RESPECTIVE DIRECTIONS, SAID ACTUATING MEMBERS OF THE UPPER DRAWER ENGAGING THE ADJACENT DOGS AND ROTATING SAME TO CAUSE ROTATION OF THE RODS IN A DIRECTION TO MOVE THE DOGS FOR THE LOWER DRAWER TO POSITIONS AT SUBSTANTIALLY RIGHT ANGLES TO THE ADJACENT DRAWER SIDE WALLS AND TO SIMULTANEOUSLY CAUSE THE LAST MENTIONED DOGS TO MOVE UPWARDLY ON THE CAM PORTIONS OF THE LIFTERS, THE DOGS FOR THE LOWER DRAWERS THEN BEING IN OPERATIVE POSITION RELATIVE TO THE RESPECTIVE STOPS OF THE LOWER DRAWER TO PREVENT OPENING MOVEMENT OF SAID LOWER DRAWER, OUTWARD MOVEMENT OF THE UPPER DRAWER CAUSING THE ACTUATING MEMBERS AT THE SIDES THEREOF TO MOVE OUT OF ENGAGEMENT WITH THE RESPECTIVE DOGS ADJACENT SAID ACTUATING MEMBERS SO THAT SAID RODS MOVE DOWNWARDLY AND CAUSE THE DOGS FOR THE LOWER DRAWER TO MOVE OUT OF THE PATH OF THE STOP MEANS ON THE SIDE WALLS OF SAID LOWER DRAWER. 